Elderly couple facing eviction to remain home for holidays

Judge gives couple, Champion Mortgage 45 days to reach agreement

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – An elderly couple will be able to celebrate the holidays in their modest Miami Gardens homes after facing eviction after they took out a reverse mortgage.

Willie Leland and his wife of more than 50 years, Rose, raised their family in the home.

According to their attorney, Johnny Gaspard, the couple took out a reverse mortgage in 2008.

"They want to keep their home. This is where they have been living, this is where they raised their family and this is all that they have," Gaspard told Judge Antonio Marin in court Monday. 

A reverse mortgage is a type of loan that allows homeowners 62-years and older to borrow against the accrued equity in their homes. The loan must be paid back when the borrower dies, moves, or no longer lives in the home.

"Homeowners are required to pay the taxes and insurance every year," Gaspard said, explaining the loan requirements. 

Gaspard said the Lelands forgot to make that payment in 2013.

After learning of the oversight Gaspard said he worked with Champion Mortgage to develop a repayment plan for the nearly $9,000 owed.

He said the Lelands agreed to the plan, signed the agreement, and mailed it to Champion Mortgage along with the initial payment.

But according to Gaspard, the lender claimed that agreement was lost in the mail this time last year.

He said Champion Mortgage also "erroneously, force-placed insurance on the Lelands' home for 2014."

Local 10 News consumer investigative reporter Christina Vazquez uncovered thousands of complaints filed against the Texas-based lender.

This comes as federal regulators issue a warning about the integrity of reverse mortgage advertising.

Despite paying for insurance and taxes in 2014 and 2015, Gaspard said the company placed an eviction notice on the couple's door last month.

Marin told both parties that they have 45 days to try and work out the issue before another hearing will be held.

"I want everybody actively working on this deal now," Marin said in court.

While the Lelands did not get the outcome they wanted, they are still hopeful that things will work out in the end.

"Humans can work together," Willie Leland said. "There is no problem there. All you have to do is have a willing mind."

The Lelands will be able to remain in their home until at the least the next hearing.

Follow Christina Vazquez on Twitter @CallChristinaTV

Follow Local 10 News on Twitter @WPLGLocal10


About the Authors:

Amanda Batchelor is the Digital Executive Producer for Local10.com.